AN OVERTURNED lorry on the A41 at the Sainsbury's roundabout caused traffic chaos during yesterday morning's rush hour.

The driver of the vehicle escaped un-hurt after the incident at about 5.50am, but bales of recycled paper were scattered and the fuel tank was ruptured spilling 360 litres of diesel on to the road surface.

The Birkenhead-bound lorry was on its side and had to be righted before clean-up operations could begin.

The whole roundabout was closed for almost three-and-a-half hours while emergency services and county highways worked to clear the debris.

Firefighter Jim Payne said: 'At one stage there was a six-mile tailback on the A41 and it was getting longer. It had a bad knock-on effect and the traffic was pretty horrendous for anyone that side of Chester.'

Initially the fire service worked to tackle the spillage using a special paste to block the drains and prevent the fuel from getting into the waterways.

A spokesman for Cheshire County Council said: 'We waited for the lorry to be removed then cleared diesel and debris away from the road surface.

'In March last year we remarked the road to improve lane discipline and this has been having some effect.'

An ambulance wasn't required for the driver who had managed to force his way out of the vehicle's cab and he was interviewed by police at the scene.

City centre worker Chris Blackhurst got caught up in the congestion.

He said: 'It really got on my wick, I was an hour-and-a-half late for work this morning and the traffic was an absolute nightmare.